Top News - Tobacco Reporter

Swiss to Vote on Advertising Restrictions

On Feb. 13, Swiss voters will decide on a popular initiative that calls for greater restrictions on tobacco advertising, reports SWI.

The initiative aims to ban tobacco and e-cigarette advertising wherever children and adolescents might see it, for example in the press, on posters, on the internet or at events. Advertising directed only at adults or shown in places to which minors have no access would still be allowed.

For the Federal Council and Parliament, the initiative goes too far, however. They are opposing it with an indirect counter-proposal in the form of the new Tobacco Products Act. The new rules would ban advertising of tobacco products and electronic cigarettes on billboards and in cinemas. In addition, tobacco companies would no longer be permitted to give away free cigarettes or to sponsor international events in Switzerland under the counterproposal. Advertising at kiosks, in the press or on the internet would still be possible, except when aimed at minors, and the sponsorship of national events would still be permitted.

The new Tobacco Products Act can come into force regardless of the outcome of the vote on the popular initiative. But if the popular initiative is approved, federal authorities will be required to adapt the law to respond to the new requirements.

Switzerland has one of the weakest tobacco control regimes in Europe. The 2019 Tobacco Control Scale ranked Switzerland second from bottom overall and last in terms of restrictions on tobacco advertising. In addition, Switzerland is the only European country not to have ratified the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC).

At present, the advertising of tobacco products is permitted, subject to certain restrictions. Tobacco advertising on radio and television and advertising aimed specifically at minors is banned. Most cantons have brought in more far-reaching bans, prohibiting tobacco advertising on billboards and in cinemas, for example, or stopping tobacco companies from sponsoring events.

Critics attribute the country’s weak tobacco laws to the fact that Switzerland is home to leading cigarette manufacturers, such as Philip Morris International and Japan Tobacco International. About a quarter of the Swiss population smokes, including around 100,000 people aged 15 to 19.

January 5, 2022

Stiffer Penalties for Side Marketing in Zimbabwe

The Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) of Zimbabwe plans to introduce stiffer penalties for “side marketing” of tobacco, reports Daily News. Side marketing is a form of contract default in which a farmer agrees to grow for one buyer but sells to another. When this happens, the contracting merchant not only loses his tobacco but also the agricultural inputs he provided to the farmer.

“TIMB has zero tolerance to side marketing,” said TIMB public relations officer Chelesani Moyo. “We are encouraging all stakeholders involved in the production of tobacco to stop the practice and make the tobacco farming business sustainable in Zimbabwe as we look ahead to the 2022 tobacco marketing season.”

At the same time, the TIMB has introduced measures to protect farmers from being shortchanged by contractors through underfunding and overcharging inputs.

The organization is currently analyzing the latest submissions from contractors who previously were not compliant.

“We have 37 licensed contractors, and nine out of the 37 are partially compliant because they have submitted partial regulatory information that we require,” said Moyo.

“We gave them up until Dec. 31, 2021, to ensure they are fully compliant. We are going to suspend those who are noncompliant, and farmers will be released and allowed to be contracted to other schemes.”

January 5, 2022

Thailand Urged to Allow E-Cigarette Sales

End Cigarette Smoke Thailand (ECST) wants Thailand to legalize vapor products to enable smokers to legally switch to less harmful nicotine products, according to an article in The Bangkok Post.

Despite a seven-year-old ban on e-cigarettes, the number of vapers has steadily increased in Thailand, according to the ECST. While the National Statistical Office estimates there are 78,742 vapers in the country, ECST representative Maris Kranyawath believes there are almost a million, based on the number of people following social media pages that sell vape products.

Kranyawath said legalizing vapor products would allow state agencies to set product standards. “Thailand has had a ban on vaping for seven years, but the number of vapers has continued to increase despite it,” said Kranyawath. “This means the policy has not been effective. If vape products were legal, they could be examined and standardized by state agencies.”

To protect young people, the ECST has proposed regulations to ban minors from buying and using vape products. “A salesperson must provide vape products that are appropriate for each user,” said Kranyawath. “Moreover, each vaper should register for a vape card at a district office first. When a vaper purchases products, he/she must show the card. Also, vape stores must have a machine to scan cards to identify the customer who has a daily limit of no more than 200 mL of e-liquid per day.”

The push for permitting vapor products has been gaining momentum in Thailand. Recently, Digital Economy and Society Minister Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn said he would explore ways to legalize the sale of e-cigarettes, citing their comparatively low health risk and the impact of black market sales on tax revenues.

January 5, 2022

New Zealand: Smoking Down More Than Usual

Smoking rates have decreased more than usual, reports NZ Herald, citing a recent government health survey.

In 2020–2021, smoking rates decreased across all ethnic groups. For Maori adults, smoking was down 6.4 percent to 22.3 percent compared to 28.7 percent in 2019/2020.

Deborah Hart, director of Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), says that the decline is due to the smoke-free initiatives put in place, including plain packaging and taxes on cigarettes.

Vaping rates have increased by 3.5 percent compared to 0.9 percent in 2015/2016. A study by ASH and the University of Auckland showed that daily use of e-cigarettes is occurring overwhelmingly in existing smokers.

“What we’re seeing is people transition from very harmful cigarette smoking to a much less harmful product in e-cigarettes or vaping, and that’s been going on for a few years, and we’re going to continue to see that, I would think,” Hart said.

Youth smoking is down 8.1 percent from 12.9 percent the previous year, according to the study.

January 5, 2022

South Africa: Treasury Outlines Vapor Taxation Proposal

South Africa’s National Treasury has outlined a proposal on the taxation of electronic nicotine-delivery systems (ENDS), reports BusinessTech.

Among other measures, the agency is considering taxes on hardware and e-liquids, with higher nicotine products attracting higher levies than low-nicotine varieties.

While the market for ENDS is still in its infancy in South Africa, the National Treasury expects it to grow. The agency says it wants to learn from the experience of other countries where growth of ENDS has raised concerns about underage consumption. The agency said it is also aware of concerns about the potential of ENDS to undermine global tobacco control efforts and public health.

Vaping products are covered neither by South Africa’s Tobacco Products Control Act nor by the country’s Medicines Act. The government has proposed the Control of Tobacco Products and Electronic Nicotine-Delivery Systems Bill in which it hopes to regulate vapor products in a similar way as cigarettes.

The bill was introduced for public comment in 2018 but remains in a draft form.

According to a 2021 study commissioned by the Vapor Products Association of SA, the vapor industry in 2019 contributed ZAR2.49 billion to South Africa’s GDP while paying ZAR710 million in taxes. More than 350,000 South Africans use vapor products.

January 4, 2022

Momentum Building in U.S. for Regulating Synthetic Nicotine

Momentum appears to be building for the regulation of synthetic nicotine in the United States.

On Dec. 15, U.S. Representative Mikie Sherrill introduced a bill designed to give the U.S. Food and Drug Administration the authority to regulate synthetic nicotine products just as it regulates nicotine products made or derived from tobacco.

“This bill will ensure all tobacco products, including products made with synthetic nicotine, are regulated by the FDA in order to protect kids in our communities and those who may seek to use these products,” Sherrill said in a statement.

The Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) currently defines “tobacco product” as “any product made or derived from tobacco that is intended for human consumption, including any component, part or accessory of a tobacco product.”

In November, FDA Center for Tobacco Products Director Mitch Zeller suggested synthetic nicotine could be considered a component of e-cigarettes, which would allow the agency to regulate it.

The FDA could also seek to regulate synthetic nicotine as a drug. The FDCA defines drugs, among other things, as “articles (other than food) intended to affect the structure or any function of the body.”

In the 1990s, the FDA tried to regulate nicotine as a drug and cigarettes and smokeless tobacco as “drug delivery devices.” In FDA v. Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp., the U.S. Supreme Court found that the FDA lacked such authority.

The 2009 Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act gave the FDA the authority to regulate tobacco products. Should the FDA regulate synthetic nicotine as a drug today, it could point to recent legislation from Congress giving the FDA a role in this space more broadly. So far, however, the FDA has not taken this approach.

Following a flurry of marketing denial orders in which the FDA forced many products containing tobacco-derived nicotine off the market, several manufacturers have switched to synthetic nicotine to avoid the agency’s rigorous and costly premarket review process.

In response to such moves, lawmakers have initiated investigations and called for regulation of the category. On Nov. 16, nine senators sent a letter to the FDA imploring the agency to regulate synthetic nicotine products. The authors expressed concerns that e-cigarette manufacturers like Puff Bar are switching to synthetic nicotine to skirt FDA oversight and premarket review requirements to continue selling their products—including flavored products—that they assert appeal to youth.

That same day, the North Carolina attorney general launched an investigation into Puff Bar. On Nov. 8, he sent letters to e-cigarette manufacturers Puff Bar and Next Generation Labs requesting extensive records pertaining to the production and marketing of the companies’ synthetic nicotine products.

January 4, 2022

Duterte Urged to Sign Vape Bill into Law

Tobacco harm reduction proponents are urging Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte to sign into law a bill that makes it easier for smokers to switch from cigarettes to less harmful nicotine products, reports The Manila Bulletin.

In a letter addressed to Duterte, consumers and harm reduction advocacy groups said the passage of the Vape Bill can save the lives of millions of Filipino smokers, “because legitimate alternative products will be allowed to be sold to smokers who want to stop smoking.”

The letter was signed by Vapers PH, Vaper Ako, Smoke Free Conversation PH, Nicotine Consumers Union of the Philippines, Philippine E-cigarette Industry Association, Quit For Good, Heated Equipment as Alternative to Traditional Smoking Philippines, PROVAPE, Philippine Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates and Consumer Choice Philippines.

The groups said that by passing the Vape Bill, the Philippines will join the growing list of progressive countries that believe in providing less harmful alternatives to their smoker population who don’t want to stop smoking.

“Our country will join the ranks of the European Union, the United Kingdom, the United States, New Zealand, Italy, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Norway, Greece, Portugal, Switzerland, Egypt and Uruguay, among many others that believe in providing smokers with alternative products to save their lives,” the activists wrote.

The group noted that the bill bans sales of vapor products to minors and has provisions to prevent the sale of unregulated products.

The legislation bans the sale to and use by minors of vape products, along with the sale, advertising and promotion of vape products within 100 meters of school perimeter and playground. Use of flavor descriptors that unduly appeal to minors in vape products and the display of vape products immediately next to products of particular interest to minors are prohibited.

The activists stressed that with the “growing positive scientific evidence coupled with our life-changing experiences, our resolve is stronger that vaping saves lives.”

January 3, 2022

Turkey Raises Special Consumption Tax on Tobacco

Turkey has increased the special consumption tax on tobacco by 47.4 percent to TRY14.39 ($1.10) per pack, reports Bianet.

The special consumption tax is based on the domestic producer price index. It is calculated both as a minimum fixed tax and a fixed tax. Each of these has been increased from TRY0.48 to TRY0.7 lira for a pack of cigarettes.

The minimum price of a pack of cigarettes will be TRY22.85.

January 3, 2022

Armenia Bans Tobacco Product Displays

Retailers in Armenia are no longer allowed to show their customers tobacco products, reports Public Radio of Armenia.

A new tobacco law, passed in February 2020, prohibits the public display of any tobacco product, including traditional cigarettes, e-cigarettes and electronic nicotine delivery devices at trade centers or in public catering establishments.

The public display of empty boxes, blocks, trademarks or symbols is also prohibited.

“The full application of these provisions over time will significantly reduce tobacco use in the country, which will significantly improve the health of the population and the development of the country’s economy,” said says then-Minister of Health Arsen Torosyan after the law passed.

In March, Armenia will also ban smoking in cafés and restaurants.

January 3, 2022

Sri Lanka Plans Annual Tobacco Tax Hikes

Sri Lanka’s National Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol (NATA) wants to change taxes so that cigarette prices increase by 6 percent each year, reports The Island.

The proposed tax formula comprises six components––cigarette tax percentage, proposed price for next year, inflation, present price, GDP and the “externality factor” of 4 percent.

“The 4 percent is added to ensure that the price of a cigarette is increased every year even if inflation drops to zero,” said Samadhi Rajapaksa, Chairman, NATA.

Rajapaksa noted that Sri Lankan depends less on tobacco tax revenue than many people believe. “Our tax revenue from these sources is about 11 percent only,” he said.

Earlier, Rajapaksa said that the NATA would increase the minimum age for sale, purchase and promotion of tobacco products from 21 to 24 in 2022.

Rajapaksa told the media that NATA had decided to amend the National Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol Act this year.

The increase of the minimum age for sale, purchase and promotion of tobacco products was one of the proposed amendments to the Act, he said.

“Already advertising, promotion and sponsorship of tobacco is prohibited. We want to stop the cross border advertising of tobacco products, too,” he said.

January 3, 2022

Category: Top News